Kanae: A twist on Mulan
by Akari Kamiya
Summary: A simple story twist on mulan with the bleach characters instead of the mulan characters (Does that make sense...? lol) Enjoy! rated K plus for now but may be changed in future!
1. Chapter 1

**i'm so sorry that update sunday was a COMPLETE failure!**

**I hope you will all forgive me :'(**

**anyway, here is the new story I've been working on, I will be posting 2 chapters of it tonight and more throughout the week**

**here's a list of basic characters:**

**General: Byakuya**

**Shang: Shuhei**

**Mulan: Kanae**

**Yao: Izuru**

**Tempo: Renji**

**Ling: Ichigo**

**there are some more characters you may pick up on and a lot of story twists that I thought would be cool to add in.**

**this story is VERY different from the original, but I hope you enjoy!**

**I do not own bleach or mulan, I only own Akiho, Akari and Aido. My two BFFs own Namiko and Kanae **

**OoOoOoOoO**

**Aido's POV**

_Place: Great wall of china_

I stand to attention, ready for anything as I walk along my assigned part of the wall. All is silent around me and the nearest noise i can hear is a bird's cry, somewhere far off.

Wait... now it's closer.

All of a sudden, a massive eagle swoops down and knocks me off my feet, my helmet falling from my head. What on earth?

I hear a clang as a metal hook catches in one of the nooks in the brickwork of the wall. as many other start flying over, I know immediately what I must do;

"Attack! We're under attack! Light the signal!" I yell.

**Byakuya's POV**

_Place: the emperor's castle_

I walk into the throne room with an overwhelming feeling of confidence and pride. I have a job to do and I know how it must be done.

I bow before the emperor;

"Your majesty, the esparda have crossed our northern border."

"Impossible!" Sasakibe exclaims; "No-one can get through the great wall!"

The emperor holds up his hand to silence his advisor, so I continue.

"Soske Aizen and Kaname Tosen are leading them."

The emperor frowns, deep in thought;

"Were the Hikari Doragon unable to stop them?"

"They were not able to arrive in time, my daughter was leading them; as soon as she received word she lead her warriors toward the wall but by that time she was already too late."

"I see." the emperor replies, stroking his beard;

"I will have defences set up around your castle immediately." I assure him;

"No." he tells me, "Send your troops to protect my people. Sasakibe,"

"Yes?"

"Send out notifications to all the provinces, we need as many new recruits as possible."

I stand,

"Excuse me your majesty, but i believe my troops can stop them."

"I won't take any chances general. Besides, I need you to prepare your son to train the new recruits."

"Yes sir, he will be ready."

**Kanae's POV**

_Place: Northern Rukongai_

"Ummmm... Polite... Poised... Calm... Hmmmmmm... what else...?"

I murmur, looking at the notes I've already taken on my arm

I'm trying to remember what it takes to work here, I like to, every once in a while, just to make sure I don't mess up and get fired; then where would I go?

"Ah! Punctual!"

I make one more mark just as the rooster crows, oh damn! My chores! I knew there was something I forgot!

I race from my room, searching for Kiko.

"Kiko! Kiko! Where are you girl?"

I finally spot the pesky dog sniffing around the chicken pen;

"There you are! Come on! Help me with my chores will you?"

Kiko races to the feed pen and tips a whole bag of feed into the chicken's tray; I roll my eyes, oh well, that'll have to do or I'll be late!

I saddle up my horse Sakura and race out of the courtyard before any of the other maids can yell at me for feeding the chickens too much.

I work (and live) in one of the richest houses in China. The Kuchiki Manor, but today is a very special day for my friend Akiho.

She's meeting the matchmaker today and I promised I'd be there for her.

OoOoOoO

I arrive just in time to see Akiho lining up with the other girls to see the matchmaker. I can see Akiho's mother watching proudly as her daughter is picked first to see the matchmaker; lucky thing.

What I wouldn't give to have a husband and be out of poverty for good.

But for Akiho, it doesn't look good.

It's only been five minutes and she's already been kicked out, as well as shamed in front of the whole village.

I rush to her side;

"Oh Akiho..." i whisper, tears falling from her cheeks as her mother ushers her away from the staring crowd.

She beckons to me and I follow from a distance until we reach their home, where Akiho rushes off. Before I can follow her, her mother holds me back;

"Let her be, Kanae. She needs time to herself. After her father going back to war and now this, she's probably only just keeping everything together."

"What?" I say, shocked "her father is going back to war?"

"Yes." she replies solemnly. "We received the letter this morning. The esparda have crossed the northern border. He is to leave in the morning."

I bow my head; Akiho's father is a man with a heart like no other. When I had no-one else to turn to, he offered me a home and a job opportunity that was meant for his son, who passed away days before he was to start working at the Kuchiki manor.

And now he's being sent off to war yet again. To surely die.

**Akiho's POV**

_Place: Cherry blossom garden_

"Hey..."

I look up; it's Kanae, standing a few metres away with tears in her eyes;

"So, my mother told you about... the war."

"Yeah"

"My father is going to die..." I whisper, tears falling from my cheeks yet again.

"No, he's not."

"But Kanae, he will, his back-" she cuts me off

"I have an idea to keep your father out of the line of fire, but will only work with your help. Can I trust you?"

I'm shocked, but I give a nod;

"What is it? I will help."

"Alright, here's what we're going to do…"

**Kanae's POV**

_Place: Akiho's house_

Akiho pours her father another cup of tea.

I pick up my fork and quickly shove another lump of rice into my mouth. This is gonna get ugly real soon.

Akiho slams the teapot down onto the table;

"You shouldn't have to go! There are plenty of young men who will fight for china!"

"It is an honour to protect my family and my country." her father replies in a firm voice, as if that settled the matter.

"So you'll die for honour?"

"I will die doing what's right!" he tells her, standing up. I cringe at the look on his face; I've never seen him angry

"But-" Akiho starts, but her father cuts her off;

"I know my place! It is time you learned yours!"

Akiho's face turns from one of anger to one of despair; she races from the room without looking back.

I leap up and follow her without a backward glance.

I catch up to her on the porch, rain falling onto her face.

"Ok, so that didn't work." i say, she sighs;

"So, what's plan B?"

"You may not like it."

"Try your best; I doubt anything can surprise me anymore."

I take a deep breath, it's taken me a long time to decide to actually do this or not.

"I will go in your father's place."

OoOoOoO

Tell me what you guys think of this!

R&R!

next chapter coming in about 5 minutes!

peace out!

-Akari


	2. Chapter 2

**I have nothing to say except I own nothing**

**enjoy!**

Akari's POV

Place: Soldier's camp

"Father, you have to let the Hikari Doragon aid you!" I beg, but he turns away to place his helmet on his head;

"Father, Aizen will kill you for sure!"

"I am not afraid of death Akari." I scowl at him and punch him on the shoulder blade, hard;

"Idiot..." I mutter "Be careful"

He smiles at me slightly;

"You know I will."

Someone lies their hand on my shoulder from behind; I turn to see my betrothed, Toshiro. His horse is saddled and ready to go. He wraps me in a tight hug. No words can describe how much I'll worry about him.

"You be careful too." i whisper in his ear, he buries his face in my neck;

"I will, and I promise you I'll come home."

"That's all I can ask for."

And before we can say anything else, Toshiro and my father mount their horses in unison and ride off, the rest of the soldiers racing along behind them.

"Come on Akari," Namiko says "Let's go, Shuhei is coming out of his tent, look."

I turn to see that she's right; Shuhei seems to be threatening one of the new recruits.

"It looks like someone will have to go play peacemaker," I mutter "Can't I turn my back for one second without him getting pissed at someone?"

Namiko giggles and follows me over to the centre of the attention of everyone, including Sasakibe (not to mention a bunch of angry soldiers). I place my hand on Shuhei's shoulder;

"I don't think there is much need for threats Shuhei, he has clearly recognised his mistake and will not repeat it, will you?" I question; the soldier seems awed at my amount of control over Shuhei;

"Um... No! No..." I nod to him, there's something off about him; i just can't put my finger on it...

"Captain!" Comes a yell, everyone's attention is turned towards a horse that's just come rushing through the gates, carrying Momo;

"Captain Kuchiki! I have a message from headquarters!"

I walk up to her and accept the scroll of parchment; my eyes widen as I read.

"Very well then," i say "Return to your duties Momo, I will deal with it."

She dips her head, wheels her horse around and disappears out the gate, leaving most of the soldiers dumb-struck.

_The next day..._

I crouch outside the small, run-down tent and listen for signs of life, what an idiot. If she's going to join the army illegally she has to at least try and hide!

Pitching a tent a hundred metres away from the initial camp is like putting up a banner with the words 'I HAVE SOMETHING TO HIDE' painted clearly on it. Ok, that's it. I push through the tent flaps and shake the girl awake, she jumps and her head whips up to stare at me;

"Don't say a word!" i hiss at her, "I know your secret, and I'm going to help you."

Her eyes widen;

"How do you know?"

"I have friends."

"If you really are going to help me, i have to be able to trust you."

I nod in approval;

"You speak wisely for a girl your age. Alright, here."

I take out the letter I'd gotten from Akiho yesterday and begin to read it out loud;

_"Dear Akari, I'm going to make this letter really short in case you have to dispose of it. One of my friends, Kanae Akiyama, has kindly decided to take my father's place in the army. I beg of you that you don't execute her or reveal her in any way! Just watch her for me, my father is going to live for many years and i thank her for that. Please keep her safe and help her out of any trouble! From, your friend, Akiho."_

Silence fills the tent, Kanae staring at the letter;

"She told you?"

"Don't worry, i'm not going to turn you in. your dedication is a blessing to you and I admire that. Akiho is an old friend of mine, we went to school together."

Kanae nods slowly, taking in everything that I've said. I throw her shoes at her;

"Hurry up, training starts in one hour and if i were you, I'd get something to eat before you start."

OoOoOoO

Place: Kuchiki Tent

Namiko pours me a cup of tea and quickly scurries to the other side of the room, I don't blame her. The mood in here is frosty beyond words. I wish I could leave; but that would mean abandoning Shuhei and i would never do that;

"You can't train a bunch of boys who can't even listen to their superiors!"

"I can train them and i will! Remember who's in charge of these men Sasakibe!"

"And you remember who has direct contact with the emperor!"

To Namiko's sudden delight, I fling my pocket-knife between the two sot that it sticks to the canvas wall;

"For the sake of all the ancestors! Your bickering is enough to put any lady off their breakfast! Sasakibe, get a grip, you aren't the only one with direct contact lines with the emperor and Shuhei..." I sigh; "You're my brother and one of my best friends, but you need to get your act together, you're both acting like the fools you're supposed to be training!"

The two men stare at me as i push past them and swish my way out the door.

"Men..." I mutter "I'm glad Toshiro doesn't act like that"

OoOoOoO

I smirk as a soldier named Izuru attempts to climb the pole, then Renji tries and then Ichigo. Each of them failing. Kanae (or, ping, as she's going by) tries too; I chuckle as she falls to the ground. Shuhei sighs;

"We got a long way to go..."

2 weeks later…

Night-time…

"You're unsuited for the rage of war. Pack up, go home. You're through." I sigh as I peek out of the tent flaps to see Shuhei dismissing Kanae. Poor thing, she's failed in every class since she got here. With a heavy heart and a tired mind, I lie down on my pallet and fall asleep.

The next morning...

I awake to the sounds of cheers, Namiko is shaking me in excitement;

"Akari! Get up get up! You have to see this!"

I grab my cloak and step outside my tent; I stare in amazement at Kanae. She's sitting at the top of the tower, the retrieved arrow lying at Shuhei's feet. I nod in approval;

'Good job Kanae' I think to myself, 'good job'

OoOoOoO

Since then, Kanae has improved massively and has even managed to beat Shuhei in a sparring match. I have to admit, I'm impressed. I never knew she could possess such talent. I'm sitting high up in a tree, keeping watch for Shuhei. And by keeping watch i mean eavesdropping on him and Sasakibe.

"Ha! You think those soldiers are ready to fight?!" Sasakibe scoffs

"They completed their training." Shuhei points out calmly "Those boys wouldn't last a minute against the esparda! They are no fit to be soldiers, than you are to be captain!"

My eyes widen and I sit up, staring across the way at the small tent that Shuhei has just stormed out of. Just then, a bird lands on my shoulder; a young crow. I know this bird, her name is Ebony, and she's a messenger bird for the Hikari Doragon.

"Hello Ebony..." I murmur, taking a roll of parchment from her claws;

_Akari,_

_ The new recruits are needed on the front line, there are more espardas and hollows than we first thought. _

_Please hurry._

_ -Byakuya_

I race up behind Shuhei;

"Shuhei! You need to see this!"

**R&R!**

**new chapter coming sooooooooooooooooon! **

**-Akari ;D**


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